Portrait of a Villain: Zhao
by irohsteashoppegirls
Summary: Ever wonder why Zhao is such an evil jerk?
1. Part I

Portrait of a Villain: Zhao

by Iroh's Tea Shoppe Girls

Disclaimer: We don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender. Someday our destiny will be fulfilled and tea and Iroh will both belong to us. Until that day, stay strong loyal fans.

Zhao had been born in the Earth Kingdom, a bastard child to a penniless peasant woman. His mother had been raped by one of the officers of the Fire Nation during the war. When he was born with his mother's brown eyes, everyone had been greatly relieved, that maybe he was his mother's future husband's child.

When he was three he accidentally burnt his mother's eyebrows off. Horrified by her flame-producing, firebending toddler, disappointed that he was indeed a product of the rape. His mother had another baby on the way, this one certainly from her husband, little Zhao found himself abandoned in front of an orphanage.

But Zhao didn't let that get in his way. He ran away when he was only 10 and somehow made his way to the land of his father, the Fire Nation. Unfortunately, searching for a fire bender who raped an Earth Kingdom woman was akin to looking for a needle in a haystack. There were far too many who fit the qualifications.

After a disappointing and brief search for his father, little Zhao found himself fascinated by the art of his people- fire bending. There he harassed every fire bending street performer that he could find. After meeting with rejection after rejection, it so happened that someone was observing him.

Jeong Jeong was a younger man, just had finished his apprenticeship at that time. The commander over him had told him to find an apprentice. The senior officer had meant to encourage Jeong Jeong to take one of the new recruits under his wing. However, impressed by Zhao's perseverance, how the young boy never gave up, Jeong Jeong decided to take him under his wing.

The young Fire Master was impressed by his new very young apprentice, it seemed Zhao would try to imitate any fire bending he saw, and would never give up until he got it right. The young apprentice wanted to always get everything right. And he wouldn't let anything, not eating or sleeping, get him his way.

Sometimes Jeong Jeong would have to force his young apprentice to take a break to eat or sleep. When he was on active duty, Jeong Jeong's biggest worry wasn't dying at the hands of his enemy but that his young apprentice would starve to death, practicing some fancy move day and night without even taking a break or resting.

By age fifteen young Zhao grew board with Jeong Jeong's instruction. His master had run out of powerful attacks to teach him. The restless youth left a crude note on his bed and ran away one night. He searched for a new master. Eventually his travels lead him to the Fire Nation Royal Palace.

Prince Ozai was a young man of about twenty-five years of age. Zhao had to weasel his way into the palace. He disguised himself as a servant, which wasn't too hard. After about a week he decided to try to approach the prince to speak with him. Rumor had it that Ozai was not actually the eldest, but the eldest had abjugated his claim to the throne. The gossip on the street said that it was because Ozai had intimidated his older brother into doing so. Whatever the case was, young Zhao admired the older youth.

Zhao held his hands behind himself as he approached the prince, who was reading reports at his desk. His hands were shaking with anticipation. "Your highness?"

"What is it?" Ozai snapped at the youth. He wondered what was getting into the servants these days, back when he was a child, they were just happy to serve him, now, in these modern times, they were so, so uppity.

"I wish to be your disciple," Zhao said so quickly Ozai barely understood it.

"Get lost," the prince snapped as he went back to his reading. "I am a prince, not a school teacher."

"Please? I'm pretty good at firebending already," Zhao offered. "I'll do anything."

"Anything?" Ozai asked as he turned around. The prince noticed that the boy who stood in front of him had brown eyes. That was unusual, it was almost a rule that firebenders had amber eyes. "Tell me, who are your parents. What lineage do you hail from?"

Zhao looked away, that was one of the questions he had hoped the prince would not ask. "My father is an unknown firebender. My mother is a lowly Earth Kingdom peasant. I traveled to the Fire Nation, my true home, when I was just a small boy."

"Hmmm," the prince rubbed his chin considering what uses he could have for the boy. "You're half Earth Kingdom eh? You look it."

Zhao bite his lip, to hold back his tears. He hated his heritage. He hated his brown eyes. He hated any and all ways he was unacceptable.

"I think I may have a task for you," Ozai said finally after a couple nerve wrecking minutes. "I want you to by my eyes and ears in the Earth Kingdom. I can promise you will be well rewarded for your efforts. Should you prove loyal to the Fire Nation of course."

Zhao bowed, he had never felt so grateful in his life. "Thank you sire, you will not be disappointed!"

Ozai smiled an almost sadistic smile. "Talk to my brother, General Iroh, tomorrow. He will have the orders for you."

"Yes my liege," Zhao said as he tried to walk backwards out of the room while bowing.


	2. Part II

Portrait of a Villain: Zhao part 2

By: Iroh's Tea Shoppe Girls

Disclaimer: Iroh and Avatar: The Last Airbender are on our wishlist

At a recruiting office in the Earth Kingdom, as directed by the Fire Nation:

"Well," the gruff middle-age man began his explanation, staring at a piece of paper. "To be frank with you, Zhao, we can't accept you. The woman you claim as your mother says she doesn't know anything about you, no one's known you for the past five years."

"But, that shouldn't matter," the teenager retorted. "I mean, it's like I told you, I went off to the woods to find myself. I tried being a hermit."

The recruiter sighed. The kid did look like a good kid. But rules were rules. Being at war for the last hundred years, they had learned that their enemy was more than capable of pretending to join their ranks only to stab them in the back.

"Just give it some time," the recruiter suggested. "Go back to your mom, or get a job around here. Just establish your membership in the Earth Kingdom. You need someone who knows you and can vouch for you."

"Fine," young Zhao said bitterly. The man was right, it wasn't as if he'd believe the stupid lies he was spouting. But establishing himself in the community would take a lot of time, and likely a lot of work. Earth Kingdom folk weren't the most trusting, what being conquered slowly by the Fire Nation.

As he was exiting the army recruitment office, planning to go back to the place he was staying he overheard a quarrel.

"I don't want to!" a twenty year old woman shouted at her aging mother. "Why can't you understand that!"

"Sweetie," the older woman coaxed. "It's just a date; you really should take meeting men much more seriously. You're getting so old; all of your friends have married already."

"I have no friends," the homely girl replied. "Men don't like me. I'm not pretty."

"Now, now," the middle-aged woman said gently. "If you have that attitude, you'll never find a husband. Don't focus on your looks; focus on your housekeeping skills, wait, no, never mind, focus on your childbearing hips."

Zhao tried to not look at them as he walked passed them. But the "childbearing hips" comment made him bite his lip to repress a snicker. He wasn't sure what was more pathetic, the unmarried twenty year old or the mother who still had hope for the girl.

"I DON'T WANT TO," the young woman said very loudly. "I don't care if you want me to get married and have babies. I don't want to. I want to stay at home and play with my friends."

Zhao couldn't resist snickering to himself as he walked further and further away. He went back to his room and wrote a letter to the man he was told to report to, asking for guidance. After that, there wasn't much else for the young man to do, so he went out to dinner.

Zhao went to a restaurant known as the Roasting Duck. It was reputed to be cheap, with fast service and good food. Zhao liked eating good food when it wasn't on his dime.

He ordered a dish he had never heard of, figuring that it never heart to try something new. The atmosphere was just how he wanted it, well lit, somewhat crowded, with a background of idle chatter. If he was supposed to be part of this community, he wanted to know a lot about it before it got to know anything about him.

The teenager overheard about that the laundry maid was having an affair with the butcher in the next town over. The school teacher had just gotten engaged. The rich old guy in town that died a few years back might've been murdered. The local law enforcement was being paid off by a new gang. Zhao was drooling merely from the gossip.

Unfortunately the peaceful moment was not to last. "I told you that I don't like him," a shrill whiney voice emerged from the rest. "You don't respect me!"

The woman he had seen earlier fighting with her mother was here. Zhao spotted her getting up from a table, ignoring what the man she was with was saying and storming off, towards him. Her mother.

"Please Bivi," the middle-aged woman said as she followed her.

"No," the young woman retorted. "I'm an adult, leave me alone!"

"But Bivi," the mother pleaded. "You're getting so old; you should find a man to marry even if he's not perfect. Madaa is nice man."

"I don't like him," Bivi said simply. "I don't want to marry him."

"What kind of man do you want to marry?" the exasperated mother asked her willful daughter.

"Someone cute," the young woman said smiling suddenly. "With brown eyes. I like men with brown eyes."

Zhao's food arrived. He was amused that the poor sap hadn't left yet. If he were that fellow, he wouldn't put up with that kind of behavior; he'd have left a while ago. He began to cut and eat the meat while the woman's mother coaxed her to returning to her seat.

Zhao sat thinking about what kind of a job he wanted. He realized he had little skills besides firebending, and firebending wasn't going to win him any friends. There had to be an easier way than getting a job. He knew returning to his mother was out of the question, not that he felt she was really ever his family. Maybe he could get people to form a fake family for him. Or maybe he could start his own.

It hit the young firebender like a ton of bricks. He looked over at the poor sap who was deciding that he wasn't that interested in the homely woman.


End file.
